Theater and Dance

THEATER

Birds

{bullet} A wealthy woman falls into the city’s urban underbelly after she gives a homeless man her lover’s coat. 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday. Through July 28. Rorschach Theatre, 1459 Columbia Road NW. $12-$20. 202/452-5538.

Brooklyn Boy

{bullet} A successful author returns to his hometown when his father’s health fails. 1:45 and 7:45 p.m. Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday; 7:45 p.m. Thursday-Friday. Through July 29. Olney Theatre Center, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road, Olney. $25-$46. 301/924-3400.

Dead Man’s Cell Phone

{bullet} A lonely woman answers a stranger’s cell phone and finds herself the guardian of his memory. 8 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday. Through July 8. Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, 641 D St. NW. $22-$52. 202/393-3939.

Emergen-SEE!

{bullet} A slave ship rises out of the Hudson River and sets New York City into a whirlwind of emotion in this one-man show. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, Thursday-Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday. July 5-22. Arena Stage, 1101 Sixth St., SW. $38-$50. 202/488-3300.

Godspell

{bullet} The Gospel according to St. Matthew, told through clowning, charades and vaudeville. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Friday, 1:30 and 7:30 Saturday, 1:30 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. July 5-Aug. 5. Olney Theatre Center, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road, Olney. $25-$46. 301/924-3400.

Hamlet

{bullet} Commanded by his father’s ghost to seek revenge, Hamlet struggles with the human and spiritual costs of pursuing justice. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, 8 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday. Through July 29. Shakespeare Theatre Company, 450 Seventh St. NW. $19-$76.25. 202/547-1122.

Macbeth

{bullet} Shakespeare’s tragedy of the lust for power and the betrayal of friends. 8 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday. Through July 15. Washington Shakespeare Company at the Clark Street Playhouse, 601 S. Clark St., Arlington. $25-$35. 703/418-4808.

Pangs of the Messiah

{bullet} A family exhibits widely divergent responses after a peace treaty is signed between the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 8 p.m. Saturday, 3 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday. Through July 22. Theater J, 1529 16th St. NW. $15-$45. 800/494-8497.

The Phantom of the Opera

{bullet} Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical about a mysterious man who lives under the Paris Opera House and his obsession with a chorus girl named Christine Daae. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 1:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Through Aug. 12. Kennedy Center Opera House, F Street and New Hampshire Avenue NW. $36-$94. 202/467-4600.

Pygmalion

{bullet} A British linguistics expert meets his match when he transforms a cockney girl into a refined young lady. 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday. July 5-Aug. 6. Quotidian Theatre Company at The Writer’s Center, 4508 Walsh St., Bethesda. $20. 301/816-1023.

Reefer Madness: The Musical

{bullet} It’s 1936 and a new drug, “marihuana,” is threatening the American way of life. 8:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, 7:30 p.m. Sunday. July 11-Aug. 5. Studio Theatre Secondstage, 1501 14th St. NW. $35-$39. 202/332-3300.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead

{bullet} The 40th anniversary production of Tom Stoppard’s comedic tragedy, in which Hamlet’s two schoolmates find themselves the reluctant heroes of their own play. 8 p.m. Wednesday-Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday. Through July 7. Studio Theatre, 1501 14th St. NW. $39-$55. 202/332-3300.

Shear Madness

{bullet} The long-running whodunit comedy continues indefinitely. 8 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 9 p.m. Friday, 6 and 9 p.m. Saturday, 3:30 and 7 p.m. Sunday. Kennedy Center Theater Lab, F Street and New Hampshire Avenue NW. $34. 202/467-4600.

Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper

{bullet} The British rock musical based on London’s darkest and most notorious resident. 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday. Through July 15. Landless Theatre Company at DCAC, 2438 18th St., NW. $15-$18. 301/515-4494.

The Witches of Eastwick

{bullet} Three unhappy women innocently conjure up their perfect man; their dreams come true when he arrives, but only one woman can have him. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, 8 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday. Through July 15. Signature Theatre, 2800 S. Stafford St., Arlington. $38-$63. 703/820-7790.

STAGE

The Capitol Steps

Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. 202/397-SEAT.

{bullet} The musical and political satire troupe. 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday. $31.50.

Comedy Sportz D.C.

Ballston Common Mall

Old Vic Arena, 4238 Wilson Blvd., Arlington. 703/294-LAFF

{bullet} Teams of comedians battle each other in competitive improvisational comedy sketches. 8 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 7:30 and 10 p.m. Saturday. $8-$12.

DINNER THEATER

Here’s Killing You, Kid

Blair Mansion Mysteries performance. 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday through Oct. 30. Doubletree Hotel, Crystal City, Arlington. $42.95. 888/471-4802.

Little Shop of Horrors

A down-and-out skid row floral assistant becomes an overnight sensation when he discovers an exotic plant with a mysterious craving. Through Aug. 19. 8:15 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 12:30 and 7:15 p.m. Sunday. $28.50-$47. Toby’s Dinner Theatre, 5900 Symphony Woods Road, Columbia, Md. 301/596-6161.

Murder Upon Request

The Interactive comedy-mystery group performs plays at two locations: “A Deadly Private Party” at Alfio’s La Trattoria, 4515 Willard Ave., Chevy Chase, and “Just Killing Time” at the Arlington Hilton, 950 N. Stafford St., Arlington. 8 p.m. Friday, Saturday; 1 p.m. Sunday. $55. Both run indefinitely. 703/379-8108.

The So-So-Sopranos

Blair Mansion Mysteries performance. 7:30 p.m. July 20-21. Blair Mansion Inn Restaurant, 7711 Eastern Ave., Silver Spring. $52.95. 301/588-6646.

DANCE

Atlas Performing Arts Center

1333 H St. NE. 202/399-7993.

The Cipher on H. 8 p.m. July 7. $12-$22.

Dance Place

3225 Eighth St. NE. 202/269-1600.

New releases Choreographers Showcase. 8 p.m. July 7, 7 p.m. July 8. $7-$20.